Comital castle on the Seine between Montereau and Nogent.
In 1192 Philip Augustus came here and had the Jews of the town burned after they executed a Christian accused of murdering one of them; the place was then in the countess of Champagne's land.
Who holds it
- Name
- Theobald III, count of Champagne
- Title
- Lord
- Since
- 1197
- Confidence
- high
Blanche hands Bray to Philip in May 1201.
Lord in 1200
Count Theobald III.
How things stand that morning
The count's.
Threats
- The king's interest in the Seine crossings
Communities
The Jewish community destroyed in 1192.
Fairs and markets
Market.
Militia
Not established.
Walls and castle
Comital castle.
Trade and crafts
Seine traffic.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- May 1201 (later course)Handed to Philip Augustus by Blanche; kept until 1222.Depends on: Theobald's death. Stopped by: Theobald living.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The 1192 massacre (Rigord) and the 1201 handover are attested.
On the map: Point only.
Primary sources for Champagne
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- Chronicle of Robert of Auxerre, Robert of Auxerre (Robert of Saint-Marien) (about 1190 to 1211; continued at Saint-Marien to 1227). A universal chronicle whose last twenty years are contemporary and well informed from Burgundy and the Auxerrois. Read online
- Universal Chronicle of the Anonymous of Laon, Anonymous (an English-born canon of Laon) (about 1219). A Picard chronicle whose author had lived in England and keeps an eye on both kingdoms. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Deeds of Philip Augustus, Rigord (about 1186 to 1206, in stages). The French court's own chronicle for the year, from the monk of Saint-Denis who called himself the king's chronographer. Read online
- Deeds of Philip Augustus; The Philippide, William the Breton (Guillaume le Breton) (Gesta about 1214 to 1220; Philippide 1214 to 1224). William abridged Rigord for the years before 1207 and then continued him, so for 1200 the Gesta is a shortened Rigord with a few added touches: the Le Goulet settlement, Blanche's marriage, and the interdict. Read online
- The Conquest of Constantinople (Villehardouin), Geoffrey of Villehardouin (about 1207 to 1213). Opens with the preaching of Fulk of Neuilly and the tournament at Ecry (28 November 1199) where Theobald III of Champagne and Louis of Blois took the cross, then the taking of the cross by Baldwin of Flanders, Hugh of Saint-Pol, Geoffrey of Perche and others through early 1200, the assemblies at Soissons and Compiegne in 1200, and the six envoys sent to Venice in the winter of 1200 to 1201. Read online
- The Conquest of Constantinople, Robert de Clari, knight of Picardy (about 1205 to 1216). A rank-and-file crusader's account that begins with the preaching of the crusade and the taking of the cross in 1199 to 1200 by the counts of Flanders, Blois and Champagne and by the Picard lords, among them Peter of Amiens, Robert's own lord, then the negotiations with Venice. Read online
3 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.